In the Spotlight: BU mascot a joke, along with basketball program

Friday

Feb 28, 2014 at 10:13 PM

Andrew Farraher

It was 25 years ago this past November that I attended my first Bradley University men’s basketball game. I was 8 months old.

Since then, I’ve seen the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. I’ve seen Braves come to Peoria and go; I’ve seen Braves come and stay. I’ve traveled to St. Louis for a Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Thursday play-in game loss. I’ve skipped a week of school to travel to Detroit for an NCAA regional to watch two of the greatest games in Bradley basketball history. Throughout college, the Braves were a reminder of home. Now, having moved from Peoria, they are yet again my saving grace some nights.

What I’m trying to say is that this basketball program is not just a basketball program; it is the source for many of my fondest memories. I know there are others who have had similar experiences, thanks to our small-town team.

When I heard Bradley was considering introducing a new mascot, I had mixed feelings. Once I heard that the university’s new representative would be a gargoyle, there were no mixed feelings. This mascot is a joke and the university and the program are the butt of it.

The last time Bradley University made it to the top of the national headlines they were a 20-plus win, 13-seed team that had just busted brackets all over the country! And now? Bradley University ranks number three on Keith Olbermann’s “World’s Worst” list on his self-titled ESPN program. Go BU! Go BU!

What the Bradley administration has been doing to this program since 2007 isn’t just bad for Bradley athletics — basketball is not alone — it’s bad for Peoria. Bradley basketball used to be something I could take pride in. I was a Braves fan. But student attendance has all but fallen off completely, except when there is a free t-shirt promotion or the number two team in the nation comes to town for a special ESPN2 national broadcast. Season ticket sales are down and fan morale is at an all-time low.

Does Bradley basketball need a revival? Without a doubt, yes. Has this revival come in the form of a gargoyle? In the opinion of this lifelong BU fan, no. If you ask me, it won’t be long before Kaboom! is just a $10,000 suit in a closet next to the old brave and the bobcat of the 1980s and ’90s. (By the way, did we ever find that stolen bobcat head?)

Andrew Farraher is a product specialist for Lexus and a native of Peoria. He now lives in Naperville.

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